India drew its largest-ever business delegation to Japan last week, led by commerce minister Piyush Goyal, as Japanese companies accelerate expansion across Indian retail, finance and technology.
Japan Inc is shifting toward India because China has become riskier, Japan's population has been shrinking for 16-17 years, the U.S. is tougher on tariffs and competition, and Southeast Asian markets are smaller.
Japanese banks have led some of India's biggest recent financial deals, including MUFG's $4.4 billion purchase of 20% of Shriram Finance and SMBC's move to become Yes Bank's largest shareholder with 24.22%.
Consumer and corporate investment is also widening: Lawson plans 10,000 Indian stores by 2050, while more than 100 Japanese firms already run global capability centres there for R&D, strategy and AI.
The push underscores India's emergence as a long-term growth market for Japan, with earlier reports also pointing to broader Japanese commitments including $12.5 billion for factories and green projects.